Eclipse
by Angel52
Summary: One-parter from Danny's POV. His thoughts on the day he died.


Eclipse  
  
Daniel Hecht sat alone at a small table in a dimly lit, smoky bar. This wasn't a place he came to often, even though it was very near his apartment. He'd been able to leave work early today, and needed a place to wind down. He'd ended up in the bar almost without remembering how he'd gotten there.  
  
When he had arrived, one or two people who were passing acquiantances had tried to engage him in conversation. They soon realized Danny's thoughts were elsewhere, and had drifted off to begin a game of pool. He hardly noticed their leaving. His mind was on only one person.  
  
Sydney.  
  
When they had parted the day before, Danny had been confused, angry and hurt. Sydney had always been honest with him.... or so he'd thought. He had never imagined she kept much of nything from him, let alone something so shocking.  
  
Now, with just a little help from the whiskey he was still drinking, Danny felt differently. His mind had drifted to thoughts of how happy Sydney made him Even when they weren't together, it made him smile just to think of her. Like he was right now.  
  
There were so many things he loved about her. Besides how beautiful he thought she was on the outside, it was her inner qualities that completely won him over. She smiled easily when they were together, and she knew how to make him laugh. She had to be the most genuinely caring person he had ever met. He'd often thought she would make a better doctor than he did. She was certainly smart enough to handle medical school. He'd admired how easily she handled doing her schoolwork.  
  
Sydney was the only one who ever called him Danny. She had begun using that nickname almost immediately after their first date, and it had stuck. He had caught himself once or twice, about to sign his nickname to papers at the hospital. The people there either called him Daniel, or by his last name. That was fine; his nickname was between he and Sydney. He didn't want to share it with anyone else.  
  
He knew now how wrong he'd been not to be more understanding. After having this time to himself to consider what Sydney's job must actually be like, it frightened him. He realized she must be in danger every day.  
  
Even so, her job was, to him, just a job. He decided it didn't and never would define her being to him. It never had when he'd thought she worked for the bank, so why change now?  
  
What it came down to was that he loved her. Nothing else really mattered. He knew it would hurt them both equally if he were to turn his back on her.They were engaged, and he hadn't made the decision to ask for her hand in some sort of fit of passion. He was entirely committed to their relationship. To call it all off would make a fool of him.Mor importantly, it would hurt Sydney very deeply. He had no intention of doing that.  
  
Carrying his final drink with him, he walked over to the pay phone, picked up the receiver and calmly inserted the coins. As he dialed Sydney's number, he thought about how he would put everything he was feeling into words.  
  
As the answering machine picked up, he felt disappointed. Then, he remembered. She was away, not due back until sometime later. He wasn't even sure when. He left a message that was as to the point as he could make it. As soon as he hung up, he left his glass on a table and went to his car. All he wanted now was to go home and have a nice hot shower.  
  
As soon as he arrived home, he went into the bathroom and turned on the shower, so it would be good and warm by the time he got in. Then he went back to the bedroom to take off his shirt and tie. He'd noticed his 5 o'clock shadow was very pronounced, and he wanted to shave before getting in the shower. Actually, this was something Sydney thought was very funny, and she took every opportunity she got to tease him about it. She always said that no other man she'd known shaved twice a day.  
  
Just as he finished, and looked up into the mirror, he saw someone standing in the doorway to the bathroom. He barely had time to react at all, even when he saw the man was holding a gun. in seconds, the stranger was practically nose-to-nose with him. Danny heard the gun go off, and felt an instant rage of pain in his abdomen. It wasn't long after that that the world grayed out on him. His last conscious thought was of how beautiful Sydney looked when she smiled. He felt so sad to realize that he would never get to see it again. 


End file.
